Serendipity
by maria2445
Summary: Hermione Granger was insanely excited to be offered a job as a Ministry of Magic Auror. Not only had she not graduated Hogwarts, she was also only 19 years old. Little did she know that her first day on the job would not go as planned.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: The Beginning of the End

_She was in the Forbidden Forest cold, scared--alone. She went off looking for Harry after he disappeared. She was looking around the clearing she was standing in when she saw a bright green flash. A very high pitched laugh rang through the forest. The girl felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She knew that laugh. She kept walking towards the noise until she saw a cloaked man through the trees. The girl couldn't really make out his face because his hood was up. She immediately hid in the nearest bush._

The man was carrying what looked like the body of a teenage boy but she was too far away to see who it was. When the man was far away enough not to hear her, she kept walking in the direction that he came from. As soon as she turned the corner, she saw Bellatrix Lestrange talking to none other than Voldemort himself. A soft hissing fell over the forest and the girl looked around to see what was making the noise. On the ground right behind her was Nagini. The girl started to run but it was too late: Nagini had already told her master about the trespasser.

"HERMIONE GRANGER!" bellowed Voldemort. Hermione froze on the spot, which happened to be right behind a big Oak tree.

"Don't hide from us, you filthy Mudblood!" bellowed Bellatrix. "Do you think we won't find you?"  
  
"Petrificus Totalus!" _roared Voldemort. Hermione felt her body lock and she fell to the ground, her face landing in a huge puddle of mud._

"There you are! Granger, is it?"said Bellatrix."Would you like to tell us why you have come to spy on us?"

Hermione felt the curse lift and she was now flying through the air towards a rock that Voldemort had transfigured into a heavy metal chair. As soon as Hermione was put on the chair, she felt thick ropes surround her while Bellatrix snatched her wand away. Hermione took this chance to glance around. She was now in a different clearing than the one she was in before. This one was much bigger and it looked as though many of the trees were ripped right out of the ground.

"So, Granger, would you like to tell us why you're here?" asked Voldemort. Hermione remained silent. She wasn't going to tell them she went looking for Harry, as that would give away the fact that no one knew where he was. Suddenly, Voldemort started to laugh. "Oh, you're trying to protect Potter! There's no use now! Potter is dead!" yelled Voldemort. 

No, he can't be dead! Not Harry. He was the Chosen One! __

"Liar!" cried Hermione as she felt hot tears streaming down her face.   
"Crucio!" _roared Bellatrix. Hermione screamed in pain as the feeling of hot knives piercing every in of her body hit her. Hermione knew better than to insult Voldemort in front of Bellatrix, but it couldn't be true. Harry couldn't be dead. _

_  
"Calm down Bella, let's show Potter to her so she understands our little situation," said Voldemort as he took out his wand and jabbed himself in the throat. His voice instantly became louder as he yelled,"Come here, Malfoy!"_

Draco Malfoy walked into the clearing with Harry Potter in his arms.

"NO! HARRY! NO!" cried Hermione. Draco didn't even look up at the screaming Hermione.

"See, Granger, no one can defeat the Dark Lord, not even The Boy Who Lived!" sneered Draco as he started laughing. His laugh was really cold and harsh, but Hermione couldn't help but notice that Draco had a big slash across his face. Bellatrix stepped towards Hermione and aimed another curse at her but she stumbled over a branch on the ground and the spell hit the ropes instead. The ropes fell apart. Hermione dived for her wand, which Bellatrix had left on the ground.  
  
"Stupefy!" _roared Hermione, and the well aimed spell hit a confused Bellatrix straight in the chest. Hermione saw Draco running out of the clearing and tried to hit him with a Full-Body Bind Curse, but missed._

Hermione turned towards Voldemort and saw his red snake eyes flash with anger. He raised his wand and with one quick flick, screamed "AVADA KEDAVRA!" _She ducked out of the way and ran to hide behind a tall spruce tree. She caught her breath, quickly stuck her head out from behind the spruce and roared, _"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

Hermione woke up with a start. This recurring nightmare had been haunting her for eight months now, ever since she fired that curse at Voldemort and he vanished. She never did find out if the curse had hit its target because Voldemort's body was never found. When the Aurors came around all they found was a stunned Bellatrix and a dead Harry Potter. Hermione put her head back on her pillow, took three deep breaths and pushed the image out of her mind. She had to get enough sleep tonight, since tomorrow was her big day.

Hermione woke up after what seemed to be only two minutes of sleep. She rolled over on her side and looked at the alarm clock.

_Blimey, it's already 6:30!  
_  
Hermione got out of bed and glanced at the picture of her parents on the night table. She opened her bedroom door and walked down the stairs, making sure to hop the last creaking step. Mrs. Weasley had been kind enough to let Hermione stay at the Burrow after the Death Eaters got her parents. It would be a poor way to repay her if she woke her up at 6:30 A.M. Hermione remembered the night her parents were killed well.

She had just came home after a long time away with Harry and Ron searching for Horcruxes, when she saw the Dark Mark floating above her house. She drew out her wand and ran inside. What she saw changed her life forever. Her parents were laying on the floor, spread-eagled and there was a message on the wall, in what looked like blood, that said, "The Dark Lord Prevails."

Hermione made herself a cup of tea and opened the window to let Ron's owl, Pig, in. She took the post off the owl's leg. There weren't any letters because most of her correspondents lived in the Burrow, but there was a fresh copy of the Daily Prophet. Hermione looked at the front page of the paper. Some of the old Death Eaters, like Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, had been captured in a raid of the rundown Malfoy Manor, but nothing else was worth Hermione's interest.

_I wonder what happened to that little brat, Draco? _thought Hermione. _  
_  
Hermione put the paper down, still wrapped in thought and went back upstairs. She was feeling a little gross and decided to take a shower. Hermione got her robe from her room and went into the bathroom. She had just opened the door when she heard someone shout on the other side.

"Ron, it's just me. I thought you were still asleep," said Hermione. She opened the bathroom door wider and let herself into the room.

"Oh, no, I woke up early today because Pig was screeching at the window, but by the time I got up he was gone and I was wide awake," answered Ron. He picked up his things and started to leave the bathroom.  
Ron was halfway out the door before he stopped in his tracks. Glancing at Hermione, he remembered that today was the first day of her Auror training.

"Hermione, are you nervous about today?" asked Ron.

"Yes. I don't know if I'll be as good as everyone else," replied Hermione, with a look of worry etched on her face.

"Don't worry, you were top of our year in Hogwarts," said Ron as he slipped his hands around her hips and pulled her in close to him. He planted a soft kiss on her lips and pulled her in even closer. Hermione quickly pulled away blushing slightly.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. We'll just have to see, won't we?" said Hermione in a brisk tone, obviously still worried about her training. She pushed Ron out and closed the door.

After a quick shower, Hermione threw on some clothes and ran down the stairs. She grabbed her cloak off the hook and seized some Floo Powder off the fireplace. She was about to throw the Floo Powder in the fireplace when she heard Mrs. Weasley call her name. She jogged to the kitchen and stuck her head through the open door.  
"Yes, ?" called Hermione.  
"Hermione, dear, how long to you think you'll be gone? I need you to make dinner tonight," asked .

"I think I should be back by four, but I really have to go now. I'm already late and you know how Moody is with punctuality," replied Hermione.

"All right, good luck dear!" called as Hermione jogged back to the fire place.

"Ministry of Magic!" yelled Hermione. She threw the Floo Powder in the fireplace. In a matter of seconds, Hermione stepped out onto the dark wood floors of the Ministry of Magic. She looked around the Atrium. There was a big portrait of Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister of Magic, and there were also many fireplaces along the walls that shone with green flames.

Hermione passed through the Security Desk, after presenting her wand for checking to the wizard behind it , and walked into the first elevator.

It took a while for the elevator to get to Level Two because one of the paper airplanes got jammed in the door. By the time Hermoine finally got to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, she was already twenty minutes late. She ran through the heavy oak doors of the Auror Office and right into Alastor Moody.

"Nice of you to finally show up, Ms. Granger. I was about to send Dawlish to look for you!" said Moody in his usual gruff voice.

"I'm sorry Moody, I got caught up at--"

Hermione's voice trailed off and her heart skipped a beat as she tilted her head out from behind Moody to see who the tall, blond boy standing behind him was. The boy had cold grey eyes and his signature smirk was on his face.

"Draco Malfoy!" cried Hermione. Malfoy took two steps forward and looked Hermione straight in the eyes. He spoke in a soft, almost sexy voice.

"Surprised, Granger?"


	2. Chapter 2

Serendipity

Chapter Two: My World, Your World, Our World.

Hermione couldn't believe her eyes. Draco Malfoy, the boy who had witnessed Harry's murder and then laughed about it, was standing right in front of her once again. A Death Eater was standing in the heart of the Ministry, in the centre of an Auror office! Yet, Moody was treating him as though he was actually supposed to be there. She watched him as he walked over to a stool, transfigured it into a big comfy multi-coloured armchair and sat down. He took a Snitch out of his pocket, let it go, and started catching it periodically in front of his face. This behaviour reminded her of someone else; someone that Draco had carried in his arms eight months ago. She felt hot tears rising to her eyes.

Draco tried his best to suppress his laughter when Hermione started to tear up at the mere sight of him. He was surprised to see her too, but not enough to start crying.

What Draco didn't understand was why the Mudblood was there in the first place. He was supposed to be in Auror training.  
_  
Maybe she was becoming an Auror too?  
_  
Draco shook at the thought of working in the same office as a Mudblood, but especially Granger. Not only was she an annoying know-it-all but she also looked at Draco as though he was the most disgusting thing in the world. Draco shoved the Snitch back into his pocket as the air in the room started to thicken with tension.

After a few minutes, Hermione's facial expression changed from sorrow to pure hatred. She wiped the remaining tears off her face and her gaze fell straight on Draco.

"Why is he here?" asked Hermione in a dangerously low voice.

"He is here, Hermione, because he is going to be your new partner," replied Moody in a very calm manner, as though he was just speaking about the weather.

Draco shot up from the couch. A looked of bewilderment and anger flooded his handsome face.

"New partner! Moody, I can't be partners with that Granger Mudblood!" yelled Draco as he peeked over at Hermione. She looked scandalized.

"Moody, there is no way that I can be partners with Malfoy. He practically killed Harry!" cried Hermione, "You can't really expect me to work with that...that MONSTER!"

"Calm down, the both of you!" growled Moody. "At least listen to the plan before you start shouting."  
Hermione quickly collected herself. She knew that her sudden rudeness towards Moody was disrespectful; after all, he was one of the greatest Aurors of their time. Hermione gave Moody an apologetic look and mumbled, "Okay, Moody, were listening."

"Okay. Now for your training, you are to go to Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, where Tonks will be teaching you everything you need to know," explained Moody. "Then you are going to be stationed at Hogwarts, to keep an eye on the school."

"For how long are we going to be there?" asked Draco.

"For the year," replied Moody. "You may, however, come back home during the Christmas holidays."

"Where are we going to stay?" asked Hermione as she tilted her body away from the staring Draco. "I mean, most of the students know Malfoy and I, so it's not like we can just walk into the dormitories unnoticed."  
_  
Maybe, he hadn't considered this_, thought Hermione, suddenly feeling slightly hopeful._If we have no where to stay then we can't go.  
_  
"You will have the Room of Requirement to yourselves," said Moody. "I know it's only one room, but it is the only thing available now."  
_  
Drat.  
_  
"So me and Granger will have to share a room?" questioned Draco. He had a smirk on his face that made a shiver run up Hermione's spine.

"Yes." replied Moody. "The only thing the room will not do is split in two, but it has provided you with quite a nice bathroom."  
Hermione started pacing the room in a very Molly Weasley-like manner, her hands on her hips, thinking hard.

"We will start your training as soon as we've all had –" Moody was interrupted when a loud boom came from the fireplace.  
A black cloaked figure appeared out of the green fire. The figure stepped towards Moody, and took its hood off. Underneath the hood, there were two red snake-like eyes set on a pale scowling face.

Lord Voldemort had, once again, infiltrated the Ministry. Moody whipped out his wand and pointed it at the Dark Lord, who almost effortlessly Disarmed him. Lord Voldemort turned towards Hermione with a dark smile spread across his face, but then noticed Draco trying to hide behind her. It was quite a sorry sight, Draco being so much bigger than Hermione, but looking so much more scared.  
"Draco?" boomed Voldemort.

Moody used the second that Voldemort was distracted to throw what looked like a pen at Hermione. She quickly caught it, as it started to turn blue, and turned to Draco. He quickly touched it and they both instantly vanished.

______________________________________________________________________________

Hermione opened her eyes and looked around. She was in what she recognized as the Room of Requirement. There was a glass dining table in the middle of the room, with a few comfy looking chairs around it. There were also two queen size beds on either side. One side was decorated in Gryffindor gold; the other, in Slytherin green. Hanging from the ceiling, were black and gold drapes, separating the sleeping area from the rest of the room.

The last few events of that day flashed through Hermione's mind, and she sat up quickly. Draco was sitting on an armchair beside the couch Hermione was on, facing the blazing fire. He lifted his head slightly when he saw Hermione looking at him. Draco looked horrible. His face was smeared with tears and his grey eyes had lost their cold feel.

"What happened?" asked Hermione.

"Well, the Dark Lord showed up at the Ministry so Moody threw us a portkey. It led us just outside of Hogwarts," said Draco, sounding quite shaken. "You landed roughly and ended up knocking yourself out, so I brought you inside and told McGonagall everything. She told me to take you up here."

"What happened to Moody?" asked Hermione, refusing to remember that Voldemort Disarmed him before they left.

"What do you think, Granger? With no wand, against the Dark Lord? And I thought you were smart," sneered Draco.

"Oh," muttered Hermione quietly, as she looked down onto the floor. "Do you know anything else?"

"No, I've been stuck here making sure you don't die, haven't I?" said Draco coldly.

Hermione was confused. She couldn't understand why Draco was so upset about Moody. He didn't even know him that well. Hermione lifted her head to look at Draco again. He was staring at the fireplace, as if expecting someone to come out of it.

"Malfoy, did you care for Moody?" said Hermione hesitantly. She knew it was insensitive, but she couldn't help herself. She couldn't believe that Draco Malfoy actually cared about someone other than himself. Someone whose job it was to kill Dark wizards.

"No, Granger, if you must know, I didn't care for that scarred freak. It's my parents I'm worried about," replied Draco. "The Dark Lord saw me at the Ministry. He's going to know that it was my fault my parents are in jail."

Draco shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Hermione couldn't believe what she had just heard. Draco had put his own parents in jail?

"How–Why–" stammered Hermione. Draco looked up at Hermione and gave her a nasty look.

"I had to," whispered Draco before he got up and walked over to the bathroom. He locked the door behind him and blasted the water. The last thing he needed was for Hermione to hear him cry and tell Weasley about it.

______________________________________________________________________________

"He's back," whispered Lucius as he looked up at Narcissa. She was looking at her branded forearm with a horrified expression on her pale face. Lucius got up from the wooden bench and started pacing the cold room nervously.

The Death Eaters in the cells around them were already screaming. Some with joy, some with regret and some with pain. Narcissa's sister, Bellatrix, was in the next cell, yelling something unintelligible at the top of her lungs with a huge smile on her face. She caught Narcissa's eye and gave her a fake look of pity before running over to the other side of her cell. Bella's husband, Rodolphus, was there yelling just as loudly. Narcissa looked away from the celebrating couple and back to her scowling husband.

"What will the Dark Lord say when he finds out that our own son locked us in jail?" hissed Lucius, his worry lines deepening by the second.

"Lucius, aren't you worried about what he's going to do to Draco?" choked Narcissa, curling into a ball on the bench, scared to anger her usually violent husband.

"I don't care about what happens to him! He is no son of mine!" barked Lucius as he continued walking around the dark cell, twitching at every noise.

"Lucius, you can't truly mean that. Even if he made some bad choices, he is still our son," whispered Narcissa. She knew that when Draco led the group of Aurors to their hiding place he was only doing it out of desperation, but it broke Lucius' heart.  
"Let me put it this way, Narcissa, if he were to walk in here–what are they d-doing?" trembled Lucius, pointing at the two dementors opening the cell door. He looked over to the other cells, where all the occupants were watching in shock. Bellatrix, on the other hand, seemed to be enjoying the show. She was muttering something that sounded like "serves them right," under her breath.

Lucius immediately ran over to protect his wife, but without a wand he was rendered useless. The dementors glided into the cell, not bothered by all the commotion around them, and pulled their hoods. One of them reached forward and pulled the screaming Narcissa away from her husband. Lucius lunged forward to grab her, but the other dementor snatched him away.

"Narcissa..." whispered Lucius, before darkness flooded him.


	3. Chapter 3

"Malfoy! Wake up!" yelled Hermione as she ripped the black covers off the sleeping Draco. That did little, as he moaned and pulled his huge pillow over his head. Hermione rolled her eyes at his childish move.

"Malfoy, you have to get up," said Hermione. She walked over to Draco's desk and picked a shirt off the top of a big pile of Draco's clothes.

"What do you want, Granger?" groaned Draco as he groped aimlessly for his stolen blanket. Hermione walked back over to Draco and dropped his shirt on his head.

"Professor McGonagall just sent a Patronus saying that she wants to see us in her office immediately," said Hermione as she started towards the door. She wasn't going to be late just because Malfoy was too lazy to get out of bed.

"Granger, it's three in the morning," moaned Draco. He got up from his bed and covered his eyes from the bright light coming out of Hermione's wand.. He slowly put on his shirt backwards and stumbled towards Hermione.

"Yes, Malfoy, it's three in the morning so the other students are conveniently in bed," said Hermione before walking out of the room. Draco followed her at a slower pace. Hermione gave Draco an exasperated look when she turned around and saw that he was wearing his shirt backwards. Draco who obviously didn't like being laughed at scowled at her before noticing the tag sticking out of the front of his shirt. He quickly took it off and put it on the right way.

"What does it matter where the students are?" asked Draco as he caught up with Hermione.

"Well, Malfoy, they all know you as the Death Eater who let the other Death Eaters into the school and was responsible for Dumbledore's death," said Hermione coldly as Draco twitched at the late professors name. "I could only imagine what the parents would say, if they found out that a Death Eater was living in Hogwarts."

Hermione suddenly picked up her pace, but Draco, having a much longer stride, caught up with her with ease.

"Did she say why she wanted to see us?" asked Draco, changing the topic.

"No, she did not," replied Hermione as they rounded the corner and found themselves in front of the Headmistress' office.  
Draco was about to knock on the door when it swung open. On the other side was a very severe looking Professor McGonagall.

"Come in...quickly," she said impatiently as Hermione and Draco walked inside the office. "Take a seat."

The office looked like it hadn't changed since the last time Hermione was in it. The walls were still crowded with the portraits of all the late headmasters and headmistresses, who were now all sound asleep. Hermione spotted the portrait of her old headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. A deep sorrow filled her when she remembered how great the Headmaster was. Hermione's eyes quickly darted to Draco when she remembered that he was the cause of Dumbledore's death. The sound of Professor McGonagall taping her fingers against her desk brought Hermione out of her thoughts.

Hermione noticed that the Professor looked a lot older than the last time she saw her. The lines on Professor McGonagall's face seemed to have gotten deeper and there were dark circles under her eyes.

"Draco," said Professor McGonagall, "I'm afraid I have some very bad news for you."

Hermione snuck a quick peek at Draco who's face turned a few shades whiter. Professor McGonagall seemed to notice this too because she hesitated for a second before continuing.

"Your parents were attacked by dementors a few hours ago," said Professor McGonagall with a touch of softness in her usually stern voice. "Your father...was found in the cell...soulless."

Draco couldn't believe what he had just heard. His father, who he had looked up to for his entire life, was now without a soul.

"It's all the stupid Ministry's fault!" hissed Draco. "They can't keep track of their damn dementors! How could they let this happened? How could the Order let this happened?"

"Draco, the Order doesn't guard Azkaban," said Professor McGonagall calmly, "and as you probably know, the dementors are no longer in the control of the Ministry."

"Then why are they still there?" asked Draco.

"That's the mystery, Draco, they weren't supposed to be inside Azkaban anymore," answered Professor McGonagall. "Kingsley saw that they could no longer be trusted so he moved them outside. He couldn't get rid of them completely because he didn't want thousands of them causing havoc. If they were kept at Azkaban at least we could keep an eye on them."

"So how's that working out?" asked Draco bitterly as he got up and started walking out of the office. He didn't need to hear anymore of the Ministry's failed ideas about keeping the Death Eaters safely locked up.

"Wait, Draco, I'm not finished yet," said Professor McGonagall impatiently from behind him, her voice suddenly turning stern.  
Draco turned around and sat back down in his seat scowling at the Professor as though the ordeal was all her fault. He had forgotten how much he hated this woman.

"Your mother, Draco, was not found," continued the Professor. "They searched everywhere in and around Azkaban for her."

Draco's face lit up at the mention of his mother.  
_  
She might still be alive_, thought Draco, a tiny ray of hope erupting inside of him.

"Although, you must know that if she is found, she will not return to Azkaban but will be put under heavy guard elsewhere," said Professor McGonagall.

"Okay," mumbled Draco with a slight quiver in his voice. His face, however, remained cold and expressionless.

"As neither of you have proper Auror training I can hardly let you guard the school," said Professor McGonagall, changing the topic. "You are to stay in the Room of Requirement because it seems that Voldemort has taken a particular liking in you two."

"What do you mean, Professor?" asked Hermione, shifting uncomfortably in her chair. The last thing she needed was Voldemort to go after the Weasleys because of her.

"Well dear, from what we know you are of some great importance to him," answered the Professor, "But not to worry. You are perfectly safe here at Hogwarts."

"I know we're safe, but what about Ron and the rest of the Weasleys?" asked Hermione anxiously. "He must know I lived there. He'll go after them if he can't find me."

Hermione looked over at Draco and saw that his hollow, expressionless face was turning into a smirk.

"It's okay, Hermione, we have informed them of the situation and they have been moved into Grimmauld Place," said Professor

McGonagall reassuringly as Hermione let out a relieved sigh. "You don't have to worry about anything, dear"

Hermione tried to smile at the professor but failed miserably. All she could think about was being away from Ron. Draco on the other had seemed to be enjoying Hermione's pain and was smirking bigger than before. Professor McGonagall saw Draco smirking at Hermione and a look of disgust spread across her lined face.

"You two must have been wondering about Voldemort breaking into the Ministry," said the Professor, her voice noticeably more cold.

Hermione's head shot up. She hadn't thought about that. She was too busy thinking about Ron's safety to even contemplate how Voldemort broke through all of the Ministry's defenses. Judging by the look on Draco's face he hadn't either.  
"As you are aware, Voldemort and all his Death Eaters have a very profound knowledge on the use of the Imperius Curse," continued Professor McGonagall as she gave Draco a cold look. "Well, he got one of his few remaining Death Eaters to cast the Imperius Curse on..."

Professor McGonagall's voice trailed off as she looked at Hermione with regret. Hermione was confused by this look at first, but then understood.

"Percy," she whispered.

"Yes, Percy Weasley," said Professor McGonagall. "Voldemort got him to connect the Auror fireplace to the Floo network, and to lift some of the protective charms. When the boom echoed through the Ministry, that was Voldemort breaking through the rest of the charms."

Draco looked at the Professor with fear reflecting in his cold, grey eyes. If the Dark Lord knew that they were at the Ministry then he would probably know that they were at Hogwarts. After a few moments of silence Hermione spoke up.

"Can Ron come here?" she asked quietly, knowing that the question would just give the emotional Draco more reason to make fun of her.

"No, Hermione, I'm sorry but it is not safe to travel right now, even by Portkey," answered Professor McGonagall gently.

"Besides, I need you to watch over Draco without any distractions."

"Watch over me?" asked Draco in disbelief. After all he'd done to gain their trust, they still didn't trust him.

"Yes, Draco, keep an eye on you. I don't need you running off to meet your mother and let her in on all of our secrets," answered Professor McGonagall severely. "Now, I think you two better be off to your room and get some rest."

"Yes, Professor. Goodnight," said Hermione as she got up from her chair and started towards the door.

Draco stayed in his seat for an extra couple of seconds as though to say something but then just mumbled, "Whatever," and followed Hermione out.

"Ah, not again," complained Narcissa as she looked down at her bleeding hand. She had slit it open on a jagged rock once again. Narcissa had been crawling through a series of cold, dark caves for over an hour, but was no closer to finding an exit out of her pitch black hell. She had hid in these caves after she escaped from Azkaban, and had lived there for a day. That night, however, she heard foot steps echoing from the cave entrance so she ran further in to hide. While she was running she had hit a slippery spot and ended up falling and breaking her ankle. Narcissa tried to get back to the mouth of the cave but she soon realised she had gotten herself hopelessly lost.

Sitting back against the cold stone wall, Narcissa shook the thoughts from her head. She tore off a piece of her long black robes and tied it around her bleeding hand.

"This is stupid!" shouted Narcissa out of frustration, "I don't even know where I'm crawling to!"  
_  
I should just lay down here and wait to die_.

Narcissa stretched herself out on the cave floor and stared into the blackness. Her throbbing ankle and the searing pain from her hand barely kept her awake.  
_  
At least I'll be with Lucius soon.  
_  
Narcissa slowly closed her eyes and waited for death to come, but as soon as she started to doze off a voice came from the further in the tunnel.

"Hello?" called a deep voice.

Narcissa saw a light flicker in the distance and jumped up, momentarily forgetting about her ankle. She started to limp away when her ankle gave away under the weight and she fell with a sickening thump.

"Anyone there?" called a second voice. This voice was much higher obviously belonging to a woman.

Narcissa heard the footsteps coming closer but there was nothing she could do. Her ankle was broken and now from her fall it seemed as though some of her ribs were, too. Once again the light flickered across the cave walls, but this time it was much closer. The person holding the light must have noticed something because Narcissa flinched as the light hit her dirty face.

"Oh my!" shrieked the petit woman when she saw Narcissa. "Harold, you better come take a look at this."

The man named Harold quickly appeared beside the brown haired woman. The size of him compared to her made Narcissa want to laugh, even in this horrible situation. The woman stood as tall as Narcissa's shoulder while the man was so much taller than Narcissa that her head would have been below his chest.

"You must have gotten lost," said the huge man named Harold as he stretched out his hand to Narcissa. She looked at it disgusted but then decided that these filthy Muggles were her only hope right now. Narcissa took the big man's hand but as he started to pull her up she screamed out in pain.  
"Be careful!" scolded the tiny woman, "she's hurt!"

"Oh dear, we better get you to the hospital," said Harold as he leaned forward and swiftly picked Narcissa into his muscular arms.

"No, thanks. I think I'm actually quite all right," retorted Narcissa, not even wanting to think about going to a Muggle hospital. She was just going to have to find a wand somewhere.

As soon as they walked out of the cave Narcissa saw something that made her heart drop into her stomach. At the bottom of the small hill, stood a group of about ten people in black cloaks. Narcissa, thinking quickly, buried her head in the huge man's chest, but it was to no avail because they had already noticed her.

"Stop!" called the tall man by who's voice, and smell, Narcissa recognized to be Fenir Greyback. She slowly lifted her head only to see that they were surrounded by the wizards. No one had drawn their wands yet, not wanting the hassle of either killing the Muggles or erasing their memories. Another tall wizard with dark greasy hair approached the muggles.

"Give us the woman and you may go," said Snape in his slow, menacing voice.

Harold handed Narcissa over to Snape with absolutely no hesitation and stepped in front of his tiny woman. Snape merely handed Narcissa to Greyback and moved out of the way to let the couple pass. The muggles sensing the danger began to run. The last thing they heard before running out of ears reach was Narcissa pleading.

"No, Severus, please..."


	4. Chapter 4

"Morning, Malfoy," mumbled Hermione as she sat down at the small glass table where they ate all their meals. Draco, who was sitting right across from her, nodded his head in response.

They had spent the last week barely speaking to each other because Draco was still consumed with grief over his father's fate at the hands of the Dementors. Every time the house elves asked him what he would like to eat, he would just shrug them off. Draco's treatment of Hermione wasn't much better. If she tried to talk to him, he would usually ignore her. If he was having a particularly bad day he would say something to Hermione about either Harry or her parents; that would usually make her storm out into the bathroom.

Today was apparently one of Draco's good days, as Hermione was still within ten feet of him.

"Malfoy, I've been thinking," started Hermione as she glanced up to register his reaction, but she didn't find any sign that he had even heard her. Draco was just playing with his eggs, moving them from one side of the plate to the other, humming some song that Hermione wasn't familiar with. The humming, however, stopped abruptly as Draco noticed Hermione analyzing him.

Hermione quickly looked down and continued, "I was thinking that maybe, after everyone's asleep we should go out into the courtyard for some fresh air."

Draco shifted in his chair. He had longed to go outside for a while now, of being held hostage in this incredibly dull room. Draco wanted more than anything to see the sky and feel the wind blowing through his hair, but he didn't like how Hermione had used the word "we".

"What makes you think I want to go anywhere with you?" asked Draco coldly, looking back to his stale eggs which he swiftly pushed aside and went to sit on the couch. Hermione followed him and sat down on the edge of the armchair. The conversation wasn't over.

"Well, it's either you go outside with me or I'll go outside and get someone else to keep watch on you while you stay here," said Hermione calmly. She knew Draco was getting restless from staying inside for so long, so she hoped that threatening him would get him outside. Hermione could not think of one person who would be willing to watch over Draco, so she hoped he wouldn't call her on her obvious bluff. However, before Draco could say anything the door to the Room of Requirement swung open and Ron Weasley ran inside.

For the first time in five days Draco's face showed some kind of human emotion. His face was so full of hatred that it startled Hermione for a few seconds, until Ron swept her off her feet and into a hug.

"Ron!" squealed Hermione excitedly, forgetting about Draco's sudden change. Draco watched the couple as a surge of jealousy started to build up inside him. He hadn't had anyone so happy to see him since the last time he saw his mother. She should have run the other way, he thought with a pang of stabbing guilt, because he had led Aurors to capture her. Draco was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of Ron putting Hermione back on the ground.

"Ron, how did you get here?" asked Hermione breathless. "McGonagall told me that there was no safe way of traveling."

"Well, you hadn't sent an owl so I got anxious and sent an owl to McGonagall," explained Ron. "At first she told me that there would be no safe way to get to Hogwarts, but then Dad stepped in and sent her a Patronus. I don't really know what he said to her, but it got her to agree that if he would come with me by Floo powder, then I could visit."

"That's wonderful!" exclaimed Hermione, but her excitement was short-lived; Ron had just noticed Draco. In a matter of seconds the two boys had their wands out, ready to attack, but before either could do any damage, their wands flew out of their hands and Hermione's grasp.

"Ron, you need to calm down. McGonagall would have my head if either of you got hurt," said Hermione as she turned to glare at Draco. She knew that Ron would overreact but there was no reason for Draco to whip out his wand. Ron tried to slow his breathing but his attempt at controlling his temper failed as he swung his fist at Draco. Again, Hermione stopped the boys from doing any damage by stepping in front of Ron, who immediately froze.

"Hermione," said Ron, taking a step back from Hermione and Draco, "would you care to explain why you are stepping in front of a Death Eater to protect him?"

"I didn't step in front of him to protect him. I did that to protect you, Ron," said Hermione as she moved away from the smirking Draco and to her own frowning Ron. She placed one hand on Ron's chest and pushed him towards the couch. After they were seated Hermione began, "Malfoy is also becoming an Auror. We are supposed to be in training now, but since Voldemort is apparently after both of us, they can't take the risk to move us anywhere. Also, there aren't any available Aurors now that he's back."

Ron looked at Hermione for a second while the information sunk in.

"So, are you two like partners now?" asked Ron, suppressing his anger to the best of his ability.

"Well, Weasel, since you aren't brave enough to be an Auror and the Boy Who Lived is no longer alive, who else is supposed to be the little Mudblood's partner?" hissed Draco.

The reaction to his words was instantaneous. Ron grabbed his wand out of Hermione's hand and Hermione had her wand at Draco's neck before he realized what was going on. They were all so caught up in the commotion that they hadn't heard the door to the Room of Requirement open again.

"What is going on here?" bellowed a very familiar voice. Ron and Hermione immediately spun around to find at the front of the room looking startled and slightly angry.

"Oh, Dad, we're just fooling around," said Ron slightly lowering his wand and looking back to Draco who was now smiling. Hermione, however, turned her glare back to Draco and kept her wand at his neck. As soon as Draco saw that Hermione wasn't moving, his smile faded. He knew that a hex from Hermione would most likely have him cowering in pain.

also saw that Hermione wasn't backing down. Before he could raise his wand Hermione whispered, "Furnunculus,"and Draco sprouted enormous boils all over his face. Ron doubled over in laughter as soon as he saw the effects, while tried to look angry, to no avail, and soon was laughing as well, though not as loudly as Ron. Hermione merely gave Draco back his wand and went over to greet .

"Good afternoon, ," said Hermione calmly as though nothing had happened and Draco had not just run to the bathroom covered in boils.

"Hello, Hermione. Would anyone like to explain why you two just attacked an Auror in training?" asked , the fake anger still evident in his voice.

"Long story," said Ron as he went and put his arm around Hermione. She, however, didn't acknowledge him, still deep in thought about Draco. "Hermione, it's okay. He deserved it."

"I know he deserved it," said Hermione, "but I'm supposed to be keeping him out of trouble, not hexing him."

Draco immerged from the bathroom, covered in faint red spots where the boils resided just a few minutes earlier, glaring at Hermione. He walked over to his side of the room and pulled the drapes around his bed but not before saying, "I'll get you back for this, Mudblood."

However, 's gasp was drowned out by Professor McGonagall walking into the room.

"There you two are! We agreed to twenty minutes!" reminded Professor McGonagall. "Now lets go!"

Ron quickly pecked Hermione on the lips and whispered, "I'll be back soon. I promise," before following his father and Professor McGonagall out the door. Hermione stared at the closed door for a few seconds before she turned around and saw Draco leaning against the wall.

_  
Is it so hard for that boy to wear a shirt?_ thought Hermione as she sat down on the couch and picked up her book. Hermione hadn't even started reading when the book flew out of her hand. She turned to see Draco right behind her fanning himself with her book.

"What are you doing, Malfoy?" asked Hermione as she drew her wand.

Draco, however, saw the little movement and muttered, "Expelliarmus."

Hermione felt her wand fly out of her hand and started to panic. She stood up contemplating whether to make a run for the door or calm down. Her decision was made for her when Draco once again raised his wand and muttered, "Colloportus," locking the door.

"Okay, Malfoy, what's going on?" said Hermione as she tried to keep her voice steady. She didn't want Draco to think that she was scared.

"I told you I would get you back, did I not?" said Draco smirking wider. He started walking towards her and she automatically started to back up. Draco raised his wand and yelled, "Locomotor Mortis!"

Hermione felt her legs lock together and she realized that she wasn't able to walk. Draco muttered another incantation and Hermione broke out in hives all over her body. All of the sudden the door to the room swung open. Draco's smile instantly disappeared as he saw a person step inside.

"Hermione?" asked a deep voice.


End file.
